We ride fast and we ride slow. On road and off. There and back or round and round. Miles and miles or just to the cafe and back. We ride to toughen our calves and to enrich our souls. We discover new country lanes then discover our limits on the hills. But most of all we ride together – dressed very smartly in our dashing blue kit.
Although some rides go hard, we’re always sociable and we always look after each other – it’s only the fastest of racers’ chaingangs where riders might get dropped; all our other rides will regroup where necessary to keep everyone together.
You can experience riding with us at the Ride of the Falling Leaves or perhaps the Dulwich Audax, but here’s a taste of what’s on offer when you join.
Our Rides
The exact schedule of rides is always subject to change, but with a weekly roundup emailed to riders every Friday, you’ll always know exactly what’s going on each week. But the following should give you an idea of the type of rides you’re likely to see.
The Saturday Club Run leaves from Herne Hill Velodrome and follows this 56km route to the top of the North Downs and back (via a few twists and turns). Riders set off in groups ranging from pacy to steady, with the fastest going first. Meanwhile the Sunday Club Run leaves Cadence in Crystal Palace and follows different (and longer) routes each week, usually with faster, intermediate, and steady paces on offer. There is also a seriously fast (but early!) option on Sundays known as the Dawn Raid.
For a little weekday evening race training, our famed chaingang is every Wednesday evening, and in winter months, we run safe, well-lit evening training sessions at Herne Hill Velodrome – including women-only groups.
Off-roaders have numerous options too, usually open to bikes from MTB to gravel, including a Saturday ride from Crystal Palace, ad-hoc evening rides, plus you can enjoy the skills sessions put on by Herne Hill Velodrome around their trails.
Then there are the less regular “special” rides, including a women’s social ride every couple of months, plus annual rides like the Dunwich Daylight (which allows members to experience the Dunwich Dynamo while actually seeing the scenery), and various Bank Holiday excursions like the trip to Morelli’s in Broadstairs for their famous ice cream.